SOCIAL MEDIA EXPERTS FOR AMBITIOUS BUSINESSES

Why Bars Should Use Social Media

Social media is an important part of running any modern day business, but if you run or own a bar – it’s an especially valuable tool. Whether your brand is on social media or not – you can be assured that your customers will be and will be talking about your business online. With this in mind, it’s important to understand why bars should use social media marketing.

Although most business owners are well aware of social media, not all appreciate the value and relevance it has in helping with business growth. For many bar owners, running their venue’s social media networks is simply another item on their to-do list and often understandably gets swept aside.

We see many bars that have a social media presence, but only post randomly with no strategy behind what they post. Other times, the social media ‘job’ is passed to a younger member of the team who probably has more of an insight into social media than the manager – but still falls into the trap of not being used correctly and not having a coherant strategy in place.

Everyone is trying to get our attention somehow – and the winners are the ones that do it properly!

This makes us ask the question: are you really taking your bar’s social media marketing seriously?

Using social media correctly for your business is such an important part of your marketing process that not creating a strategy and having a plan on how to use it can be detrimental to your future growth. According to Social Sprout, 75% of people purchased a product because they saw it on social media. Of that percentage, 60.7% need to see a post 2-4 times from the company before making a purchase. If you’re not visibly active on social media, then you’re missing out on a large customer base.

Which social media platforms are best for bars?

Facebook

Facebook is used as a more personal touch and users like to share their opinions, images of what they’re up to and their life updates. They will seek out Facebook Pages of businesses that they are interested in (i.e. your bar), ‘like’ their Page and keep up to date with what they have going on. This gives opportunity for great customer service and a way to interact 1-2-1 with an individual. If someone likes the look of an offer you have on your business Page, they will share it with their friends and recommend your services.

A well written post with a great image will gain lots of traction. Asking people to share or like will gain more engagement too.

Twitter

Twitter is very much a snapshot of what someone is feeling right at that moment. With a limited amount of characters to be able to write (although now increasing to 280!), Twitter users will post opinions with images of their “this is happening now” thoughts and use the network as a customer service tool.

They will also use this platform to connect with people who have similar interests and share the same views which is a great way of targeting people who are all interested in something similar.

Using a GIF or short video can be a great tool to grab someone’s attention. These are great because they trigger emotion and realising that 55% of how we communicate is nonverbal – there’s no wonder why an animation can say a thousand words in one simple post.

Instagram

For bars with lots of social activity and customer engagement, Instagram could be your pot of gold if used correctly. With the platform built around visuals this is the perfect place to showcase your venue, drinks, customers, atmosphere… your very own gallery of what your bar has to offer.

Be sure to get good lighting and choose a hashtag that everyone will tap into and use when they are at your venue. Choose a filter that you like, which fits in with your branding and stick to it – use it for all your images and that will create a professional appealing portfolio.

What else could you be doing on social media?

Across these platforms there are many things that you could do to promote your business and make your social media engaging, exciting and inviting. Why not create and promote a branded hashtag that customers can use when they post their images or tweets? This way you can locate posts to re-post on your feed and use them in promoting other events.

Create special offers specifically for social media followers. This could be in the form of a free drink when they share and like your page. It could be free entrance to a gig if they show they’ve liked your Facebook Page, or it could be a discount on a 2nd cocktail if they post a picture of the first one! Surveys consistently show that people are more likely to try a new brand if they are offered a voucher or coupon – these can also be shared amongst friends for more engagement.

Consider using social media advertising to promote your bar or venue – Facebook is perfect for creating exact audience profiles that fit with your clientele. You can keep it simple and Boost your Posts – start out with a small budget and TEST TEST TEST! You can also use a social media agency such as ourselves to help you set up more detailed Facebook campaigns guarenteed to get results – from driving footfall to creating mass brand awareness.

Remember – it’s not all about selling (that may sound a strange thing to say as everyone wants to sell!) But social media is also about building relationships with new and existing customers and engaging them to help promote and build your business.

We hope that’s helped demonstrate why bars should use social media – if you’d like some direction or help in building a social media strategy or even just tips on what you need to do to stay on trend, then feel free to get in touch with us here at South Coast Social.